Not Every Battle is a War
by BananaLollypop
Summary: In which even Enjolras and Éponine find that being in a relationship isn't exactly plain sailing... Part 28 in my 'What if... Enjolnine' series. R&R appreciated as much as I would appreciate Arthur Darvill and Samantha Barks doing a duet (i.e. more than anything.)


**AN: **Hello everyone! Here is your weekly (if you haven't realised by now, I update these oneshots weekly, on a Thursday :3)installment! I had to almost completely rewrite this chapter because I accidentally turned my computer off (that's what I get for being clumsy and having a 12 year old PC with a HUGE on/off button) and guess who didn't save as she wrote... yup, that's right, this author -.- But I actually like it better this way! I had three requests (I think) for this event, so here it is! I kind of wrapped 2 prompts up into one, so I hope you enjoy!

Prompt 1: What if Éponine and Enjolras had a fight? (Prompt 2 will be at the end, because I don't want to ruin the surprise :3) Enjoy!

* * *

The first month and a half of Éponine and Enjolras' temporary separation went reasonably well. Enjolras gradually reduced his visits to two nights a week and from Friday evening through to Sunday night (because even he had to admit that it was exhausting to have to get up at four in the morning simply to get back in time for work). The time he sent with Éponine and the twins was even more special than it had been before, and Enjolras found himself longing for the weekends. He and Éponine had started working on their plans for another child, with no obvious results as of yet. It wasn't ideal, but it wasn't end of the world.

However, Monsieur Moreau' original promise of meetings with his advisors had fallen through, and Enjolras would be stuck either in an office writing up self-drafted and self-researched reports, or in a larger room shouting at officials who were apparently either too thick or too close-minded to even consider any of his reports as 'important'.

More than once after the first six weeks, he was coming home too late to put the twins to bed, and whatever time he _did_ have off, he somehow split between spending time with the twins and Éponine, and catching up on all of the work he _should_ have been discussing with Marius and Grantaire.

"You're tearing yourself in two, here, Apollo," Grantaire said quietly when Enjolras wearily strolled into the Musain for their meeting one Saturday.

"You don't need to tell me," Enjolras replied, sighing, "Evette's been giving me the silent treatment since yesterday evening because I was too late to tuck her in on Tuesday..." the drunkard smirked slightly.

"Go home, Enjolras," Grantaire said, "I'll write up my findings and have them to you before you leave tomorrow evening. Go and spend some time with your family, for God's sake; contrary to what you may believe, they're far more important that your work." Enjolras didn't need telling twice, standing up and sprinting back to his apartment, spending the evening with his family as his advisor had suggested.

Unfortunately, it wasn't often that Enjolras was given the chance to simply drop everything and see his wife and children. He was always thinking three days ahead, and more than once had to write to Éponine and cancel an evening visit. By the time he'd been away for three and a half months, he'd cut the visits down to one evening a week, and he couldn't deny the rift that was continuously growing between him and Éponine.

It was the beginning of December when the pair had their first fight.

Later on, Courfeyrac would laugh and say that they'd done well; two and a half years without a single fight was an achievement to say the least. Even Marius and Cosette were known to have their arguments, though theirs usually ended with both participating members in tears, begging for the other's forgiveness.

When Enjolras' carriage finally pulled up outside the block of flats he called hom, he was exhausted; it was almost eleven o'clock at night on a Wednesday evening, and he'd been stuck in a hall with seven stubborn officials since nine that morning, debating about something that Enjolras now couldn't remember for the life of him. He practically fell up the stairs, and he was thoroughly looking forward to falling into bed and curling up with Éponine in bed for a few hours, trying to catch some sleep before he had to leave at six o'clock in the morning.

Éponine, however, had other ideas, which became immediately apparent to Enjolras as he quietly entered their apartment.

"You're late." She said, her voice deadly quiet, her arms crossed as she sat on a chair at the dining table, watching the door as he came in.

"I know," he sighed, "I'm sorry. I got caught up, and then the horses got spooked on the way here and we had to stop..."

"The twins were expecting you to be home by seven," she said, standing up and crossing the room towards him, "It took me three hours to get them to finally go to sleep. Evette was almost sick from crying because her Papa wasn't home to tuck her in. Elyse is currently asleep _under_ her bed because she refused to go to bed without a goodnight kiss from _you_. It's not good enough, Enjolras, for you to come waltzing in at an hour to midnight, simply saying 'sorry'!"

"What else can I say, Éponine?!" he asked, exasperated, "You know I have to work! I can't just abandon the cause I've spent my life working for! What happened today was an inconvenience, and I apologise for not being able to get home until now, but I'm here, aren't I?"

"You're here _four hours late_!" Éponine screeched, "I have had to deal with two little girls who want absolutely _nothing_ unless it is their Papa! DO you have any idea how heartbreaking it is to see your little girl crying because _you_ were late, and not being able to do anything because she'd scream if you tried to help?!"

"Éponine, I don't know what else I can do!" Enjolras shouted, "I can't go back in time! What's done is done, why can't we just move on?!"

"_Because this isn't working_!" Éponine was red with anger, "You can't keep letting us down, Enjolras! We are _married_! It's all very well and good, you going off to provide for us, but the only thing you _can_ provide to help _us_ as a _family_ is yourself! We need you _here_, not coming and going whenever you get a bloody chance!"

"So, what do you want me to do?!" Enjolras' voice had risen to match the volume of her own, "Give up everything I've worked for? Give up on the very thing that almost killed you? Forget about the work that has made me who I am?! Because, I'm telling you now, Éponine, if that's what you think, then you can damn well-"

"ENJOLRAS, I AM PREGNANT." Éponine's words pierced through him like a knife. His words got stuck in his throat, his mouth gaping open from shock and in preparation to finally utter something in reply to what she'd just said. Éponine turned away from him, crossing her arms angrily, tears in her eyes.

"You... You're... I'm sorry, _what_?"

"I'm pregnant, Enjolras," she replied, and he could hear the tears in her voice, "We're having another baby." Enjolras was too shocked to say anything. Éponine sighed, "I didn't want to tell you like this..."

"Well, I know how Courf's sister felt when Gavroche told her the last time you were pregnant..." Enjolras muttered, "When... when did you find out?"

"Three weeks ago," she said quietly, sounding slightly ashamed.

"_Three weeks_?!" Enjolras exclaimed, "You've known three weeks and you didn't tell me?!"

"When was I supposed to have told you, Enjolras?!" Éponine demanded, "Two weekends ago, when you left to have a meeting with Grantaire? Last weekend, when you had a meeting with Marius?! Or perhaps last Tuesday, when you came in at half nine and almost collapsed from exhaustion? Yes, you're _completely_ right; I missed so many fantastic opportunities to tell you that we're having another child together." She finished sarcastically.

Enjolras sighed, rubbing a hand over his face, "You're right, you're right... Sorry, that was a stupid question." He sighed again, "Look, Éponine... I'm sorry I'm so late tonight. I had a rough day, if I'm honest, but I should have made more of an effort to get here earlier."

He risked taking a step closer to her, and she turned around slightly.

"I'm sorry too," she said, her voice slightly above audible, "I should have snapped like that... And I definitely shouldn't have told you that I'm pregnant like that... I was just so upset because of the twins, and I was angry and-"

"I know," he interrupted her, "You don't need to be sorry. This is... this one's all on me." She smiled slightly.

"Can we forget this ever happened?" she asked, "Move on?"

"We need to make some changes first," Enjolras said, "Change number one: I'm not living on the other side of Paris anymore. You're right... that isn't working. I'll go to Moreau tomorrow morning, and tell him that I'll have to work from home if he's going to continue working with us." Éponine frowned.

"Enjolras, you can't do that!" she protested, "What if he decided to stop working for the cause?! What'll we do then?!" Enjolras smirked.

"Don't worry," he replied, "I'll throw in some not-so-subtle hints involving us building another barricade... this time, _closer_ to the government buildings." Éponine smiled a proper smile then, so used to her husband's attempt at humour that her brain didn't know how to do otherwise.

"Change number two?" she prompted.

"I'm taking the next five days off work," he said. Éponine's mouth dropped open.

"You... you're taking _time off_?!" Enjolras laughed.

"Yes," he said, his eyes twinkling, "We need to be a family again. That means no work, no pressure, no distractions. You, me, and the twins. Maybe we could take Gavroche over to see Azelma. We haven't seen her for a while." Before he could say anything else, Éponine kissed him fiercely. Enjolras laughed through the kiss, both from happiness and shock, and when Éponine pulled away, she had tears in her eyes.

"I love you," she said, "I love you so, so much..." Enjolras shook his head, wiping a tear away as it fell onto her cheek.

"You are silly, 'Ponine," he said quietly, "I hope you're not going to be this emotional for _all_ of your pregnancy..." Éponine frowned, though her eyes were still lit up with a smile.

"Normal people say 'I love you too'." She told him, poking his chest. He kissed her again, pulling away with a smirk on his face.

"I love you too."

Éponine wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly, "Isn't it funny what distance can do for your relationship?" she murmured in his ear. He hugged her back, sighing.

"It makes a couple or breaks them," he replied, "Or, in our case, both."

"A relationship is like a horse," Éponine said thoughtfully, "For it to reach its best, it first needs to be broken in." Enjolras laughed.

"that's an interesting metaphor," he replied.

"Papa?" he and Éponine both turned in the direction of the twins' bedroom, finding Evette standing in the doorway, one hand rubbing her eyes sleepily, the other clutching the arm of her teddy bear.

"Hello, Evie," he replied, scooping her up into his arms as she ran to him. She frowned at him.

"You're late." She said, her voice at its very grumpiest.

"I know," he said, grimacing, "I'm sorry, sweetheart. It won't happen again, I promise."

"Said that last time," Evette mumbled. Enjolras chuckled.

"I know I did. This time I mean it."

"You won't go 'way again?" she checked, her hands resting on his shoulders.

"I'll be living here all the time from now on, don't you worry," he said, matching her series tone. Evette's face lit up, and she smiled widely, showing off her now fully grown front teeth. Her arms flew around his neck, hugging him tightly as Éponine had been just moments earlier.

"Missed you, Papa," she murmured, "Mama missed you too, and 'Lyse. Don't go 'way 'gain." Enjolras hugged her tightly.

"I promise I won't go anywhere, Evie," he replied, "But _you_ need to be going to bed." He replied, slightly worried that he'd start crying if he didn't move the conversation on (Good _God_, was he going soft?!).

"Not tired." Evette protested, though any effect her words might have had was ruined by the large yawn that followed.

"I don't think I believe you," Enjolras said disapprovingly, barely hiding his smile, "You go back to bed. I'll come and tuck you in again and say goodnight in a minute." Evette sighed (an almost perfect imitation of her father) as he placed her back on the ground.

"Storwy?" she asked, looking up at Enjolras pleadingly. He frowned.

"It's too late for stories," he replied. Evette pouted.

"_Pwease_?" she begged, her eyes wide. Enjolras sighed after a moment.

"Alright," he said, "But only a quick one. And _only_ if you're under the covers by the time I come in." Evette hugged her father's legs quickly, before running back into her room.

Éponine had been watching the scene, her eyes sparkling, a small smile gracing her face as Enjolras turned back to her.

"Where were we?" he asked, resting his hands on her waist.

"My being over emotional in pregnancy," she said amusedly. Enjolras laughed.

"Oh yes," he said, "We're having a baby."

"Well, I'm glad you picked _something_ up during our conversation, but I'm hoping you got a little more from it than just that."

"How did you found out?" he asked, frowning slightly, "You weren't sick again, were you?"

"No," she replied, "Well, not at first. I... sort of, fainted." Enjolras eyes widened, "It's nothing serious," Éponine interjected hurriedly, "Joly said it was common in pregnancy. It's absolutely nothing to worry about."Enjolras sighed, leaning to rest his forehead against hers.

"So, you're definitely pregnant?" he checked, "You didn't just... pass out?"

"Well, my fainting, added to the mood swings, tiredness, headaches and the fact that I almost threw up on Joly's shoes- thank _God_ for the flower pot by the door- Joly was pretty certain. That, and the fact that I _feel_ pregnant. It feels exactly like last time."

"Not _exactly_, I hope," Enjolras said quietly, "I don't think we could cope with having twins again..." Éponine laughed.

"No I suppose not," she agreed.

"Papa! I'm under the covers!" Evette called. Enjolras smiled.

"I should go and tell her a story." He said, lifting his head away from hers. Éponine yawned.

"I'm going to bed," she told him, "Join me when you've finished."

"I will," he said, kissing her again, "Éponine?"

"Hmm?" she said as she turned away.

"I love you." She smiled.

"I hope you're not going to be this clingy for _all_ of my pregnancy," She mocked. Enjolras rolled his eyes, "I love you too." She told him as she disappeared into their bedroom.

And, just like that, their argument was completely forgotten.

*. . .*

Enjolras entered the twins' room quietly, pushing the door so that it was only slightly open behind him. Evette was, indeed, tucked under the covers, waiting expectantly with a book on her lap. Enjolras smiled at her, moving to lift Elyse carefully from under her bed and tucking her _in _to bed (as opposed to under it), kissing her forehead before moving to sit with Evette.

"This one." She said pushing the book towards him, shuffling over to that there was room for him to sit next to her against the wall. Enjolras nodded approvingly, getting himself comfortable and opening the book as Evette ducked under his arm and curled into his side.

"Once upon a time, in a land far away..."

The next morning, Éponine woke to find Enjolras' side of the bed empty, and got up to go in search of him.

She found him in the same position he'd been in the night before, sat up against the wall with the book now dangling rather carelessly out of his left hand. Evette was curled up with her head in his lap, cocooned in her blankets, both of them still fast asleep.

Hearing her mother come in, Elyse lifted her head groggily, looking around. She woke up immediately upon seeing her father, her face lighting up, "Papa!" she shrieked happily, launching herself from her bed to Evette's, scrambling up and hugging him tightly as Enjolras tried to calm his now racing heart.

"Good morning, Elyse," he chuckled, Evette also waking up due to all the commotion. Éponine laughed in the doorway.

"Missed you," Elyse told him, holding onto him for dear life.

"I missed you too," he replied, hugging her back.

"I'll get started on breakfast, shall I?" Éponine smiled, leaving Enjolras to reacquaint himself with his daughters.

* * *

"I'll be back this afternoon, Evie," he laughed as Evette hugged him goodbye for the seventh time.

"But you pwomised," she said tearfully, "You said you wouldn't go 'way 'gain!"

"I'm only going for a few hours, Eve," he said, rubbing her back comfortingly, "And I'm going to make it up to you when I get back. I've got something special planned."

Éponine looked at him curiously, but said nothing as he prised Elyse from his knee.

"I'll be back by four," he murmured to her, kissing her cheek, "And this time, I'm not going to be late."

Éponine smiled, "I love you." She said.

"I love you too," he replied, kissing Elyse and Evette on the forehead before climbing into his carriage. As the twins waved to him until he was out of site, Éponine became aware of another person leaning against the wall. She sighed.

"Would you like to come upstairs, Grantaire?"

*. . .*

"Did you tell him?" Grantaire asked her as she placed a cup of tea on the table in front of him. She nodded.

"Well, I kind of... shouted it at him." She said uneasily.

"Unca 'Taire, Unca 'Taire!" Elyse squealed, running over with a piece of parchment in her hand. "Look what I drawed!" he smiled as he looked at the picture, immediately seeing Elyse, Evette, Enjolras and Éponine.

"You're quite the artist, Ellie," he said, nodding, "You might even be better than me!" Elyse grinned at him before running back to the living room floor to sit with her sister.

"That's the first picture in two weeks she's drawn with Enjolras in it," Éponine said thoughtfully, "I didn't think I should show him those ones." Grantaire nodded.

"If there's anything that's going to upset our Apollo, it's that," he agreed, "So when you said you shouted it at him, was it a... happy, 'I can't wait another second to tell you this' shout, or a..."

"It was an angry, 'you have no idea what I'm going through' shout," Éponine sighed, "Yesterday was really hard... the twins wouldn't do anything because it wasn't him asking them to. It just made me so upset and angry that when he finally walked in I just..."

"Snapped," Grantaire finished for her, "Completely understandable." Éponine was eternally grateful for Grantaire's company; he really was a good friend, when he was actually putting the effort in to be one.

"I feel like I overreacted," she admitted, "It's forgotten now, but... God, 'Taire, that was our first fight!" Grantaire almost spat his mouthful of tea across the table.

"You've been with him two and a half years, and that was your first fight?!" he said, ridiculously shocked, "You two are the most passionate, argumentative, _stubborn_ people I know. How have you not argued before?!"

"We've never had anything to argue about," Éponine shrugged, "We've always just... agreed. And if we didn't agree, we'd compromise." Grantaire shook his head.

"I'll tell you something, Athena," he said, smiling at her, "If that doesn't tell you that you're meant to be together, then I don't know what will."

* * *

**And there you have it! Wow, that was a long one! Prompt 2 was 'What if Éponine was pregnant again' (yay!). Typos are apologised for (it's really quite late for me :L). **

**Unfortunately, I won't be updating the extended edition tonight (like I said, it's late and I haven't even made a start on editing the next chapter) nor tomorrow night (I'm having a very belated birthday party.. YAY!) But I will try my very hardest to get 2 up on Saturday AND two on Sunday (You lucky things, you XD). **

**Reviews and favourites are a dream come true, prompts are what keep me writing (no word of lie, there!) and you lovely readers liking my writing is what I live for! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and thanks for reading! :)**


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